Parcelly - Winner of the Fujitsu Award for Responsible Business in the Digital Age

Improved efficiency is a win win for the environment, customers and business.

Parcelly - Winner of the Fujitsu Award for Responsible Business in the Digital Age

Increasing first time delivery rates

Reducing resource waste

Reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions

Investing in renewable energy projects through strategic partnerships

What if you never had a failed parcel delivery ever again? Parcelly is taking strides to make it happen.

We’ve all been there. Failed delivery slips, lunchtime queues and getting your neighbour to sign for packages while you’re out. All this hassle just to get the product you ordered into your hands.

With more than 100 million failed parcel deliveries in the UK each year and associated industry costs of over £750m, this is not just a pain for us. Some 59 per cent of consumers are less likely to order from a retailer again if they faced difficulties with a parcel delivery, which means it’s a real headache for online retailers and e-tailers, too.

A new way of doing business

Parcelly is turning the traditional ‘click and collect’ model on its head in a bid to eradicate failed deliveries completely.

Parcelly’s network of over 900 ‘click and collect’ locations nationwide makes parcel delivery more convenient – and drastically reduces emissions from transport in the process.

So, how does it work? “We allow individuals to collect parcels that are convenient to them,” says Sebastian Steinhauser, managing director at Parcelly.

The model is not new, but what Steinhauser was struggling with – as a keen online shopper himself – was having different collection points with different retailers. What was missing was one place for all of them.

Rather than consumers being bound to locations dictated by the online retailer and associated delivery system, Parcelly’s network of over 900 locations nationwide can be used with any online retailer or carrier worldwide – all through one app, which people can use to receive, send and return parcels. This provides seamless delivery of online purchases while providing superior customer experience.

Increasing delivery rates

Failed deliveries isn’t just annoying, it’s bad for the environment, and for costs, too. With the upsurge in online shopping habits – and therefore package deliveries – the ‘click and collect’ solution is designed to eliminate failed parcel deliveries for good, reduce the number of driver destinations as well as parcels that require multiple delivery attempts.

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Parcelly is reducing delivery vans by 21.9 per cent, yet is delivering 4.6 times as many parcels and reducing total labour costs by almost a fifth.
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By increasing first time delivery rates, Parcelly helps to take more white vans off the road, reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions at the same time. The company also donates 5 per cent of the price of each Parcelly booking to long-term partner Atmosfair which offsets CO2 by investing contributions it receives directly into the development of renewable energy projects throughout the developing world. To date, the company has compensated for over 25,000 tonnes of CO2.

And it seems like a no brainer. While it takes three and a half minutes to deliver one parcel with traditional delivery, you can deliver 50 parcels to a Parcelly location in just 13 minutes. In one shift, you can deliver 597 parcels, compared to the conventional 130. All in all, Parcelly is reducing delivery vans by 21.9 per cent, yet is delivering 4.6 times as many parcels and reducing total labour costs by almost a fifth compared to the level of traditional delivery.

Making a positive impact on local communities

Essentially, everyone benefits – the customer, location partners and the online retailers. As well as being more convenient for the customer, location partners benefit from having new customers visit their store, cross-selling opportunities and an additional revenue stream. Online retailers can advertise Parcelly as a complementary ‘click and collect’ solution during high demand seasons.

The company’s positive impact on local communities can be gauged too. The technology allows the number of shop visits to be measured, and estimate the increased footfall to local high street stores.

With ‘click and collect’ expected to continue to grow by 10.2 per cent each year, reaching a market value of £4bn by 2018 in the UK alone, the concept could well become the pre-eminent method of parcel delivery in the near future. After all, online shoppers ask for alternative, flexible and more convenient delivery options that blend seamlessly into their personal lifestyles.

Parcelly’s solution certainly seems to have been well received, earning it a plethora of significant industry award wins, ranging from Startup of the Year, Disruptor of the Year, Logistics Business of the Year and Delivery Innovation of the Year, to Best Innovation in eCommerce and Best Use of Mobile Technology.

“We have international vision,” says Steinhauser. After reaching the target 2,500-collection points in the UK, the next stop will be continental Europe.